Smyrna’s newest event space, The Remington Room, will expand this spring. Only six months after its opening in September 2018, the venue will add an additional 1,275 square feet of rentable space called The Beauregard Room.
“We quickly learned that there is a great need for what we do in this area,” owner Becky Lanham said. “When we learned that adjacent real estate was coming available, it was a no-brainer.”
Lanham said that the additional room will allow a space more suitable for smaller meetings and events while also creating more options for larger parties as an add-on area. The Remington Room, named after Lanham’s dog, Sir Remington Beauregard (IG @sir_remington_beauregard) is located at 8014 Safari Dr. in Smyrna and is currently being used for everything from meetings of 10 attendees to wedding receptions with up to 100 guests. Learn more at theremingtonroom.com.
___
Rumor has it that American Signature is remodeling the old Toys R Us building off Old Fort Parkway in Murfreesboro. Just what we need, another furniture store.
Another store filling an empty spot is Hook1 Outfitters, evidently a fishing and boating supply store that has opened in the strip mall at 1956 Old Fort Parkway. Based out of Hendersonville, the two-store chain sells supplies for fishing and paddling. Learn more at kayakfishinggear.com.
For some unknown reason, Best Buy plans to create an empty storefront and build a new standalone location within The Avenue. Slated to open in summer 2020, the new 42,226-square-foot store will be constructed next to Michaels and take over space where a David’s Bridal shop would be torn down, according to recent reports. Best Buy’s current location near Dick’s Sporting Goods opened in 2007 and measures 30,000 square feet. The Best Buy Corporate office said part of the reason for the larger building is to add a two-bay garage, so they can install more car stereos.
Speaking of moving, Linen & Rust, a boutique home furnishing store is relocating from Arrington to downtown Murfreesboro, according to a Facebook post. The owner cited a road project on Highway 96 as the reason for the move, as they expect the construction from the widening to impact the business. The shop should be open in April in the ’Boro.
Keller Williams agent Janelle Holst has taken her home-staging skills and transformed them into a home-furnishings boutique in Eagleville. Called All Things Home, the shop offers furniture, home furnishings and many locally made items on Main Street in Eagleville.
Tired of chores? Laundry Lad is a new local service that will mark one chore off your to-do list. The laundry service will pick up, clean, dry, fold and drop-off your laundry at an affordable price, according to its website. If you actually like washing your own clothes, Laundry Lad has developed its own soap. Once completed it will be for sale at thelaundrylads.com, Harvest Local Foods in Manchester and Strongbody Nutrition.
You can use the new soap after working out at RockBox Fitness, a new fitness franchise that combines boxing, kickboxing and functional training into high-energy group workouts. Craig and Wendy Lee Capurso opened a franchise of RockBox at Stones River Town Centre (the mall), 1720 Old Fort Pkwy. The 5,000-square-foot studio will be equipped with top-of-the-line surround-sound system, mood-altering lights and will be the first RockBox studio that will have a day care center attached so that parents can get fit while their kids play. To learn more, visit facebook.com/rockboxmurfreesboro.
The Law Office of W. Scott Kimberly, located in the Historic Smith & Sellers Building on the Murfreesboro Public Square, announced the addition of A. Chase Doscher as an associate attorney. Doscher will focus his practice in criminal defense, family law and personal injury. Doscher is a 2018 graduate of Belmont University College of Law, where he served as editor in chief of the prestigious Belmont Health Law Journal and achieved recognition with a Health Law Certificate during his legal studies. Prior to receiving his law license, he worked with the Tennessee Division of TennCare and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigations.
___
Food News
The Boro’s seventh Waffle House has been announced, destination Joe B. Jackson Parkway. The diner (Unit #2326) is currently hiring at mywafflehouse.com.
Nick Newton’s & Spinelli’s Murfreesboro has finally passed its codes inspection and opened for business on West Main Street (in the space formerly known as Tempt). The dual-concept will serve food from two different menus in the same space.
It seems like Rutherford County has a case of Crab Fever. The former Shoney’s on Lowery Street in Smyrna also has a Crab Fever banner, similar to the one hung recently at Stones River Mall. The California-based restaurant serves low-country boil staples like shrimp, crawfish, clams, mussels, corn on the cob, potatoes and sausage alongside a raw bar, crab legs, oysters, sliders, salads and desserts.
Big Bobby’s BBQ will take over the space on Memorial Boulevard formerly home to Rocket Shirts, according to the business’s sign. We should know more soon.
The owners of The Boulevard Bar & Grille plan to open Two J’s Grille in late summer. The new restaurant will be built on the east side of Memorial Boulevard between Osborne and Compton.
Another banner has sprung up at the former Your Pie location on Medical Center Parkway. This one is promoting Brothers Noodle Bar. Now, that’s a concept I can support.
___
Upcoming Food Truck Events
The Rutherford County Hot Chicken and Art Show, curated by crafttrap.com and Taiisha Bradley, will take place from 6–10 p.m. Friday, April 12, at the MidTN Expo Center in Murfreesboro. The highly anticipated event is expected to feature a diverse, roster of talented artists, artisans, crafters, vendors, organizations, and independent musicians. There will also be a battle for the title of “Hot Chicken Boss” of Middle Tennessee.
On Sunday, April 14, local food trucks and artisans will gather at Cousins Maine Lobster’s annual Food Truck Festival. Last year, the festival drew more than 3,000 hungry people. #CMLNASHBASH3 is slated for 11 a.m.–6 p.m. April 14 at 1932 Almaville Rd. in Smyrna. So far Cousins Maine Lobster, Chivanada, Music City Brisket, and The Kamasouptruck have confirmed they will be serving food at the bash.
___
Real Estate News
There were a few notable commercial transactions in January in north Rutherford County.
On Jan. 2, limited liability company CAPREF Smyrna sold eight lots in Smyrna’s Colonial Town Park, 803 Industrial Blvd. Smyrna’s Colonial Town Park covers 66 acres and contains 415,000 square feet of retail space. It is anchored by Target, Kohl’s, Petsmart and other large retailers. Developed under a joint venture with Colonial REIT, the shopping center is located at the intersection of Sam Ridley Parkway and I-24. The lots in Colonial Town Park sold for $27.4 million.
Hot Topic Tennessee Inc. sold its distribution center building in La Vergne, according to records from the Rutherford County Register of Deeds. The Hot Topic Tennessee distribution center is located at 6001 Reliance Drive in La Vergne. According to Rutherford County Property Assessor data, the warehouse measures more than 300,000 square feet and was completed in 2005. The Hot Topic distribution center sold for $26 million.
___
Closings Corner
On Feb. 23, Jason and Jodie Bailey, the owners of Cali’s Coffee & Creamery in Smyrna, announced the restaurant was closing immediately and permanently.
“We must do this in order to better focus on Jason’s health. With being a business owner comes a lot of things and unfortunately one of them is stress. After thinking it through we have decided that the time has come in which we put the focus back into his well-being,” the Baileys posted on Facebook.
After being open for a little more than a year, Taco Garage closed on Feb. 22. The restaurant opened December 2017 in the building that once housed Pei Wei, at a time when many other taco shops also opened in Murfreesboro’s already crowded market. Competitor Fuzzy’s Tacos has already closed. Who’s next? But never fear, dear reader, you can go to the Taco Garage in the Murfreesboro of Alabama, a.k.a., Florence. That’s right there’s a Taco Garage at 2091 Mall Rd. in Florence if anyone wants to road trip.
Sadly, the Square’s one and only tattoo shop shuttered at the end of February. Owner Todd Wilson will now be inking people out of Bright Ideas, at the intersection of East Main Street and Rutherford Boulevard.
Downtown Murfreesboro shop Moxie Art Supply closed permanently in February, and Sims Commercial Realtors and Auctioneers liquidated the store’s contents via online auction.
Smoke & Mirrors Vapor House, 2136 Middle Tennessee Blvd., has closed after five years. The owners went out with a bang by throwing a going-away party with music, food, beer, games, discounts and fun.
Autograph Rehearsal Studio is also closing. Owner Shania Blake announced via Facebook the venue will be closed at the end of February.
“After many years of supporting the local music scene and providing an inviting and welcoming environment for new and established bands to rehearse, it is with solemn hearts we announce that, unless a huge stroke of luck or karma graces us, we will be shutting down and closing our doors within the month,” she said in mid-February.
She held a three-day benefit show “to help send the place off in style.” She’s also entertaining offers, if anyone wants to take over the studio.
